Former Glory

We left Leah's parents beautiful lake-front cottage today, after spending time drinking, chatting and playing games with a few of her wonderful friends.
I was so happy and relaxed that I forget to pick up my camera, but I did snap this gargoyle as we prepared to leave.

The trend in these parts is to buy an old lakehouse, demolish it, then build your dream home in its place. This sometimes has beautiful results, but can also give rise to some serious crimes against architecture.
Leah's father however, has created a real labour of love, doing everything he can to keep the cottage original, or to renovate with sympathy to the character of the building.

A beautiful, original inglenook fireplace takes pride of place (all the more important in these cold climes) and even the mailbox displays the name of the original Scottish owners.

It's a job well done and worthy of praise, a truly admirable project.